Are you located in zone 5, and want to plant garlic, if so then you are at the right place because this article is going to give a fair idea and how and when to plant garlic in zone 5.
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Garlic plants (Allium sativum) include the varieties soft-necked (Allium sativum subsp. Sativum), and hard-necked (Allium sativum). Ophioscorodon), and elephant or great-headed, which are typically started from their cloves rather than seeds (Allium ampeloprasum).
Most garlic plants only reach a height of 1 to 2 feet, but elephant varieties can grow as tall as 5 feet.
In order to give them four to six weeks to grow before a more severe freeze, garlic should be planted right after the first autumn frost in the U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 2 through 10. Therefore, mid-October to mid-November is the ideal period to plant garlic cloves in USDA zone 5.
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The heads of garlic sold in the production areas of supermarkets may have been treated to prevent them from sprouting, so go for garlic that is meant for planting.
In USDA Zone 5, consider hard-necked varieties of garlic for the greatest results.
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even though USDA Zone 5 is also the furthest north in which some soft-necked and elephant cultivars are considered hardy.
They might not function as well there as the hard-necked species that can withstand colder temperatures do.
However, elephant cultivars grow the largest, and soft-necked varieties store the best, so you might want to try a few of these anyhow.
Leave the paper-like husks on the garlic cloves and separate the heads into individual cloves just before you plan to plant them. Pretreating the cloves is advised by Rodale’s Organic Life to ward off fungal problems.
To do this, place the cloves in a quart of water, along with 1 tablespoon of baking soda and 1 tablespoon of a liquid seaweed emulsion, such as 0-0-1, and let them soak for 2 hours.
Purchase garlic that is intended for planting rather than buying garlic from the produce sections of supermarkets, as the latter may have been treated to prevent sprouting.
For the best results in USDA zone 5, choose hard-necked types of garlic.
Although some soft-necked and elephant varieties also are considered hardy in USDA zone 5, it is the northernmost extent of their range.
Plant the cloves while they are still damp after draining them. Pick a location in your garden with rich, well-drained soil that receives full sun and has a pH that is between 6.2 and 7.
Blend a 1- to 2-inch-thick layer of compost into the top foot of the soil if the soil is deficient or poorly drained in order to increase fertility and drainage. In areas where other Allium species have grown over the last three years, avoid planting garlic.
Then, place the cloves in the bottom of the furrow with their flat bases down and pointed tips up by using a hoe to create a furrow that is about 2 inches deep down the entire length of your planting row.
Hard-necked or soft-necked garlic cloves should be planted 4 to 6 inches apart in rows that are 12 to 15 inches apart, and the earth should be tipped over the cloves to cover them.
For the elephant types, double the depth and spacing. After thoroughly watering the ground, add 3- to 5-inch layers of mulch, such as chopped dead leaves or straw, to the soil’s surface.
The garlic may require water from time to time as the cloves develop roots before the ground freezes if the fall is extremely dry. The plants should go dormant for the whole winter once the soil has frozen.
Make sure their soil receives about 1 inch of water per week from rain, irrigation, or both when they start to grow in the spring, but never let the soil get too wet.
Plant the cloves while they are still damp after draining them.
Make sure their soil receives about 1 inch of water per week from rain, irrigation, or both when they start to grow in the spring, but never let the soil get too wet.
In early spring, remove some of the mulch, leaving about a 2-inch-thick layer of it in place to help protect the young garlic sprouts and suppress weeds.
After the garlic plants have begun to grow, feed them once every two weeks by spraying them with a solution of 2 tablespoons of 0-0-1 seaweed emulsion mixed into 1 gallon of water.
Remove all flower stalks that attempt to form on the plants in early summer; doing so concentrates all of the plants’ energy into their bulbs.
The bulbs should be ready for harvest in midsummer when about two-thirds of the plant’s foliage has died.
Don’t water the plants during the two-week time period before you plan to harvest their bulbs.
Remove some of the mulch in the early spring, leaving a 2-inch-thick layer in situ to assist safeguard the new garlic sprouts and control weeds.
Once the garlic plants have started to grow, you can feed them by misting them once every two weeks with a solution made of 2 teaspoons of 0-0-1 seaweed emulsion combined with 1 gallon of water.
In order to focus all of the plants’ energy into their bulbs, remove any flower stalks that try to emerge on the plants in the early summer.
Midway through the summer, when roughly two-thirds of the plant’s foliage has died, the bulbs should be ready for harvest.
During the two weeks before you intend to harvest the plants’ bulbs, avoid watering them.
